David Schuttler
EF5
Just an unclear thought here, couldn't you use an 8mm low light cam then copy it into the HD cam? It works for DV so just wondering about HD
After witnessing the continued decrease of involvement in the SpotterNetwork staff in serving SN members with troubleshooting issues recently, I have unilaterally decided to terminate the relationship between SpotterNetwork's support and Stormtrack. I have witnessed multiple users unable to receive support weeks after initiating help threads on the forum. I find this lack of response from SpotterNetwork officials disappointing and a failure to hold up their end of the agreement that was made years ago, before I took over management of this site. In my opinion, having Stormtrack users sit and wait for so long to receive help on SpotterNetwork issues on the Stormtrack forums reflects poorly not only on SpotterNetwork, but on Stormtrack and (by association) me as well. Since the issue has not been satisfactorily addressed, I no longer wish for the Stormtrack forum to be associated with SpotterNetwork.
I apologize to those who continue to have issues with the service and continue to see their issues left unaddressed. Please understand that the connection between ST and SN was put in place long before I had any say over it. But now that I am the "captain of this ship," it is within my right (nay, duty) to make adjustments as I see necessary. Ending this relationship is such an adjustment.
For those who continue to need help, I recommend navigating a web browswer to SpotterNetwork's About page, and seeking the individuals listed on that page for all further inquiries about SpotterNetwork.
From this moment forward, the SpotterNetwork sub-forum has been hidden/deleted and there will be no assurance that any SpotterNetwork issues brought up in any of Stormtrack's other sub-forums will be addressed. Do not rely on Stormtrack for help with SpotterNetwork issues.
Sincerely, Jeff D.
3. Low Light perfomance: Now this is what I was most nervous about...my worries are over. The HV20 KILLS the HC1 in low light performance. It is SO MUCH BETTER that even if my HC1 wasn't dying, I would still upgrade! I have 3 kids and so indoor pictures has to be good. Again, my wife and friends saw a significant difference in low light performance. This was at a shutter speed of 1/60 and normal family room lighting.
4.24p recording: I read up on all the info
I am not a night chaser and I could care less about the low light issue BUT Youtube has many "test" shoots with the HV20 just type "HV20 Low light" into the search box.
Mick
Speaking of editing - what software do you recomend for an HV20 - or any other HD camcorder?
Chasing camcorders and low light don't necessarily have to do with night chasing. Many storm environments shot in daylight around storms are very low light due to cloud cover.
2.) The focus bar is so small it is very hard to control if you have large fingers. I do not and I even had a hard time with it. Also if you have the view finder tilted back it gets in the way of the focus button.
Mick, how difficult was the camera to put into Infinity. Is there an infinity button or does one just focus out with the manual setting?
Bill Hark
Bill,
Well you have to use manual focus because there is no infinity button on the unit. As far as the level of difficulty to get the unit to infinity focus, I think one will just have to get use to that little focus scroll button / control. Once one get use to it I don’t think it will be that hard. Not to say he / she will like though…
One other thing I did not like about the unit is the digital zoom. Naturally all digital zoom units get very pixilated when you zoom in VERY close. The HV20 has a 200x digital zoom and once you get to about 100x it get rather grainy so just a word of caution.
Mick
If anyone wants to see the footage of the small tornado, let me know and I'll upload it to a public location when I get the chance. I've since tested it quite a bit in low-light conditions (at dusk, for instance) and it has performed rather well.
I think many of us would love to see your video indeed. If you need a place to upload it to let me know and I will give you some space on my server for the video clip.
Mick
How stuttery is the HD20 in 24P mode? I remember my Vx2000 has a progressive mode and when you switch to it it's like you are in slow motion - very jerky. It is unusable IMO. Is the 24P mode that bad?
I watched all the low light HD20 vid on Youtube but it was hard to tell as they were usually shooting pictures of light sources. Some of the low light shots looked a bit blocky or pixelated, but that may have just been due to low quality youtube video file sizes, etc.
If you do some test footage, try and make it realistic to chasing. Go out a dusk and shoot at clouds and see what you get. Try early on and then as it gets to total dark. If comparison footage of a good low light cam could be run at the same time that would be super good - such as with a Vx2000 or Vx2100. Then we could really tell the difference.
It would also be great to see what we get with lightning. On one of the Youtube videos they had a party in the dark with strobe lights going and the video seemed to handle it well.
I have a place to upload it and will do so this weekend if I get the chance and post the URL here (I'm already pretty busy, but hope to have a little free time). If there are any particular lighting situations you or anyone else are interested in, let me know and I'll try to see if I either already have an example or can approximate those conditions. I need to break the cam out again and play around anyway in preparation for spring, as it's been awhile since I used it much.